Tag Archives: Recipe

Looking for a new recipe? WMTA offers free online West Michigan Cookbook

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By Adrianne Brown-Reasner
West Michigan Tourist Association

With so many people spending part of their time at home in the kitchen, the West Michigan Tourist Association (WMTA) decided to round up the area’s best recipes for home cooks to try their hands at.

Working with restaurants, farm markets, wineries, and more from throughout the area, WMTA has collected and compiled a cookbook full of delicious dishes and drink recipes from around West Michigan. Aspiring chefs and pro home cooks alike will find recipe options to re-create a favorite dish, make a homemade version of a restaurant staple, or try something new.

“We thought it would be fun to share these local recipes with people, especially now when so many people are doing more home cooking,” said WMTA’s Marketing Director Courtney Sheffer. “Whether you’re looking for a recipe for a fancy meal, or something simple to make with the kids, you’ll find a West Michigan recipe here to try out.”

The cookbook is split into four sections: Sides/Apps, Mains, Sweets, and Drinks. A selection of dishes from each section is listed below:

Sides/Apps

  • Cherry Broccoli Salad from Cherry Republic, Glen Arbor
  • Crispy Vinegar and Salt Potatoes from Oryana Community Co-op, Traverse City
  • Cucumber Salad from Grossnickle Farms, Kaleva

Michigan Apple Cheddar Burgers from Fennville’s Virtue Cider (Supplied)

Mains

  • Michigan Apple Cheddar Burgers from Virtue Cider, Fennville
  • Two Hearted Chicken Tacos from Bell’s Brewery, Kalamazoo
  • Apple and Squash Pierogi from Black Star Farms, Suttons Bay

Sweets

  • Apple Crisp with the Dutch Touch from Dutch Farm Market, South Haven
  • Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting from W.K. Kellogg Bird Sanctuary, Augusta
  • Vegan Rosemary Blueberry Scones from Stuart Avenue Inn, Kalamazoo

Drinks

  • Red Sangria from Dablon Winery & Vineyards, Baroda
  • Central Lake Sour from Mammoth Distilling, Bellaire
  • Oliver’s Ocean from Long Road Distillers, Grand Rapids

Journeyman’s Detroit Style Pizza (Supplied)

WMTA encourages people to try out a new recipe, and to share photos of the end result using the hashtag #WestMichigan.



View or download the West Michigan Cookbook (PDF) here: https://www.wmta.org/beer-dine-wine/west-michigan-cooks-at-home-free-digital-cookbook/

Noodle your veggies

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Pasta made from zucchini noodles—zoodles, as they’re called—has about a quarter of the calories you’d find in regular noodles. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)

By Len Canter, HealthDay


Want to get more veggies into your diet but feeling bored with the same old side dishes?


Making noodles from vegetables is the answer. They’re a great substitute for high-calorie, low-fiber traditional pasta and work just as well as a base for your favorite sauces.


While it’s possible to use a sturdy vegetable peeler to turn carrots or zucchini into noodle-length strips, a tool called a mandoline will cut your prep time in half. Just be aware that the mandoline blade has very sharp edges. You’ll want to hold the pusher accessory as you run the length of your vegetables across the blade. In addition, wear a thick kitchen glove to protect your fingers.


Zucchini is perfect for the mandoline because it slices easily. You can make the following sauce ahead of time. It yields enough for another meal.



Zucchini Noodles With Marinara Sauce

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Red chili flakes to taste
2 28-ounce cans San Marzano tomatoes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon each salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup white wine or broth, any variety
1 basil sprig
2 large zucchini
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive, safflower or grapeseed oil
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

Place a large stockpot over medium heat. Brown the garlic in two tablespoons of oil for two to three minutes. Add chili flakes, the tomatoes with their juice, tomato paste, salt and black pepper and stir. Next, add the wine or broth and the basil. Bring to a boil over high heat and then reduce to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, 30 to 40 minutes until the sauce thickens. Set aside.

Wash the zucchini. Cut off the stems and discard. Insert the fine tooth blade into a mandoline and tighten the screw to hold it in place. Press the pusher into the center of the first zucchini and hold the pusher as you run the vegetable over the surface of the mandoline to form the noodles. Repeat with the other zucchini.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the tablespoon of the oil of your choice. Add the zucchini noodles and cook two to three minutes, stirring often until they soften. Top with marinara sauce and toss well. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings


Reprinted with permission from Spectrum Health Beat.




Your health digs ginger

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Ginger is an excellent source of vitamin C, potassium and magnesium, but its most salient property is gingerol, an antibacterial and anti-inflammatory. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)

By Len Canter, HealthDay


Zesty ginger is more than just a great way to dress up your favorite recipes. It contains a potent immunity booster—its active compound gingerol is an antibacterial and anti-inflammatory compound.


Ginger is also a source of vitamin C and the minerals potassium and magnesium.


Ginger root is inexpensive and easy to find in the produce aisle of your local grocery store. Look for a piece that’s firm and smooth. It may have many nubs, but they shouldn’t be shriveled.


The skin should be a light brown and fairly smooth. Ginger keeps well for up to a few weeks in the produce bin of your fridge. Keep it wrapped in a paper towel and change the towel whenever it gets damp.


Many people peel ginger with a spoon, scraping off the skin with an edge. But a veggie peeler works too and may be faster.


When a recipe calls for minced ginger, after peeling, make horizontal slices and then cut each slice into matchsticks and cut the match sticks into tiny pieces.


For grated ginger, you could use a mini food processor or, even better, a microplane—just run one trimmed end of a piece of ginger across the metal mesh and let the ginger and its juice fall into a bowl.


Ginger is perfect for jazzing up salad dressings and marinades and for making an herbal tea.


For a simple main course, try it in this tasty vegetarian stir fry:



Ginger Stir Fry

2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 cups sliced mushrooms
2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons minced ginger
2 cups cooked brown rice
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce

Warm a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sesame oil, then the vegetables and the ginger. Cook three to four minutes, stirring often, until the veggies soften. Add the rice and the soy sauce and toss well. Serve immediately.

Yield: 4 serving


Reprinted with permission from Spectrum Health Beat.



Register now for kids’ Spring Break cooking classes at the Downtown Market

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By Downtown Market Grand Rapids

 

Spring break is nearly here and you know what that means — a lot of extra time for kids to get antsy, especially if you plan on staying home. No worries! The Downtown Market has the perfect recipe for keeping kids ages 7-11 engaged — take a trip around the world without leaving Grand Rapids!

 

KIDS SPRING BREAK GLOBETROTTERS

Doing a staycation this spring break? The Downtown Market can help! Spring break classes will take kids around the globe as they make foods such as Jamaican jerk chicken skewers, Asian egg rolls, Norwegian elk sliders and Madagascan marshmallows on the braai. For kids ages 7-11.

  • Tues., April 4, 10 am-12:30 pm — $50/child
  • Wed., April 5, 10 am-12:30 pm — $50/child
  • Thu., April 6, 10 am-12:30 pm — $50/child

KIDS SPRING BREAK ROADTRIPPERS

For the young domestic traveler, you’ll visit a few delicious U.S. destinations that are sure to expand kids’ culinary knowledge. Kids will cook up tasty Memphis barbecue, Chicago-style hot dogs and southwest veggie quesadillas. Not to be forgotten, the Floria orange sorbet will have your kids asking, “Are we there yet?” For kids ages 7-11.

  • Tues., April 4, 2:30-5 pm — $50/child
  • Wed., April 5, 2:30-5 pm — $50/child
  • Thu., April 6, 2:30-5 pm — $50/child

Click here for the complete April 2017 culinary calendar.